– Snake!
(upbeat music)
This is a good start.
(rattling)
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake.
Well it didn’t take long.
It’s like six o’clock in the morning
but we’re racing with the sun,
because the heat can be very, very bad here.
– [Narrator] Toxinologist Zoltan Takacs
is in Arizona’s Sonoran desert.
He’s on the hunt for some of the world’s
most venomous creatures.
– We making the largest toxin libraries in the world.
So I’m looking for rattlesnakes, spiders,
scorpions, Gila monsters.
All kinds of venomous creatures
because they have a diversity of venom.
– [Narrator] Venom has been evolving for millions of years
to help some animals immobilize or kill their prey.
And Toxins are the poisonous substances
that make a venomous bite so dangerous.
By targeting specific systems in the body to shut down.
But Zoltan is instead using their deadly powers
to make life-saving medications.
By collecting toxins from different species
Zoltan can create a massive toxin library,
then he can screen these toxins
to determine which ones will selectively target
certain Molecules in the Human Body.
And these toxins may eventually be re-engineered
to make brand new types of medications.
So the more samples Zoltan can collect, the better.
– Not bad.
A different species, different toxins.
The black-tailed rattlesnake.
This is the Gila monster.
There’s only a couple or so venomous species of lizards.
This lizard is the source of one of
the leading medication to treat diabetes.
Wow.
It’s coming right from here.
– [Narrator] And at night,
a whole new crowd starts to appear.
– This is very rare.
This is a Coral Snake.
The closest thing you can find in the U.S. to a Cobra.
And also the venom, it’s quite neurotoxic,
but it’s a beautiful animal.
– [Narrator] And then there’s the Scorpion.
– My new friend.
– [Narrator] Scorpion’s exoskeletons are bio-fluorescent,
so they glow under a UV light.
– [Zoltan] If you don’t like Scorpions,
don’t bring a UV light to the desert
because you will realize how many Scorpions
you have all around you.
– [Narrator] And at least one species produces a neurotoxin
that targets cancer cells in the brain.
– We’re looking for that affect on brain cancer.
– [Narrator] While snakes use their sharp fangs
scorpions rely on a pointy stinger
at the end of their tails to inject venom.
But catching these venomous creatures is only half of it.
Zoltan now needs to extract a small sample of blood.
– This is very dangerous because you are actually
holding a highly venomous snake in your hand.
The fangs just being a couple inches away from your hand.
– [Narrator] Rattlesnake venom contains
hundreds of different toxins,
many of which directly attack
the circulatory system of their victims.
But in the Lab, Zoltan and other scientists
can re-engineer some of these same toxins
to prevent circulatory problems, like heart attacks.
– You’re looking for the heart,
and you see sometimes the scales are pulsating,
and that’s where you insert the needle.
But you have to be very careful,
you don’t want to hurt the snake.
Done deal.
This tube contains millions of years
of evolutionary information.
The genetic blueprint of one of the most
lethal molecules in the universe.
So we take back to the lab and then we can recreate
the same exact venom toxins that you find in the snake.
This is why I came here.
Now I got what I need,
and I can let the snake go free,
back in the place where I caught it.
I know many people don’t really like snakes,
but it doesn’t matter whether
you’re a fan of snakes or you hate snakes.
At the end of the day, they can save your life.
(upbeat music)
